Pakistani wedding
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A Pakistani wedding typically consist of four ceremonies on four separate days.
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[edit] Mayoon
Mayoon is celebrated at the bride's house. Usually the bride's friends and close relatives get together at her house and they dance and sing. Generally the bride's family give bangles and sometimes clothes to her friends, depending on what they can afford. Then after that they all get together and put henna on each others' hands. The mayoon can last up to late night. The bride usually wears a simple yellow shalwar kamiz.
[edit] Mehendi/ Rasm e Henna
Mehendi, or the Rasm e henna ceremony, typically takes place one or two days prior to the main wedding day. The event is traditionally held separately for the bride and the groom, and henna is symbolically placed on the couple's hands. The groom's friends and family bring along sweets and henna for the bride, and the bride's family does the same for the groom. On the bride's ceremony the groom normally does not participate and similarly, on the groom's event the bride stays at home. Female guests are sometimes offered mehendi at the host's discretion.
The ceremony may also be held simultaneously for both the groom and the bride.
The bride normally wears a green dress or yellows/oranges for mehndi and uses only light, or no, make up. The groom will typically wear a casual shalwar kameez. The bride and/or the groom are brought forward in the ceremony under a decorative dupatta by their close relatives.
[edit] Shaadi
The main day of the wedding is called shaadi, which is the bride's reception. The event takes place at the bride's house, where large wedding tents may be set up in the garden or a nearby place. It has also become very common to hold the event in a marriage hall or hotel. The bride's family is responsible for the reception and arrangements on this day.
The barat or grooms procession indicates the arrival of the groom's family and friends to the bride's house. The barat is often accompanied by the rhythms of a dholak (drum) as it arrives and is greeted with flowers garland and rose petals by the brides family. It is customary for the bride's sisters and friends to stop the barat from entering the arena until a sufficient amount of cash is given to them. This can lead to banter, usually harmless and just for fun, between the bride's sisters and friends on one side and the groom's brothers and friends on the other side.
The bride traditionally wears a red/pink/purple gharara, lehenga or shalwar kameez which is heavily embroidered; other bright colors may also be seen. The dress is always accompanied with heavy gold jewelery. The groom may wear a traditional dress such as sherwani with a sehra or turban though some may prefer to wear a western inspired suit.
A dinner is served which consists of several dishes alongside pullao, tandoori chicken and naan.
It is also customary for the bride's family to offer gifts to the groom and at their discretion, his family members which is known as Salami.
Finally, the Rukhsati takes place, when the groom and his family will leave together with the bride. The Qur'an is normally held over the brides head as she walks from the stage to the exit in order to bless her. This is a somber occasion for the bride's parents as it marks the departure of their daughter from their home. The departure of the bride becomes a very emotional scene as she says farewell to the home of her parents and siblings to start a new married life.
Traditionally, the groom traveled by a decorated horse to the bride's house and after the wedding ceremony took his wife in a doli (palanquin) to his parents' house to live. The horse and the carts have nowadays been replaced by cars, and one will, in sharp contrast to western weddings, typically see a quiet bride with wet eyes as she sits in the car beside her husband leaving for her new home.
[edit] Nikah/Islamic Marriage Contract ceremony
The nikah is the Islamic marriage contract ceremony. It either takes place at the Shaadi itself or on a separate day at the bride's house, before the shaadi event.
It is performed by an imam which formally indicates signing of the marriage contract. The bride and groom must both have two witnesses present to ensure that the marriage is consensual.
[edit] Walima
This is the final day of the wedding held by couple as they host their first dinner as husband and wife. The groom's family invites all of the guests to their home for a feast at their place or a marriage hall.
The bride wears a heavily decorated dress with gold jewellery provided by the groom's family.Typical colour palettes are pastel shades.
The Western equivalent to the walima would be the wedding reception, though walima's are held the day after the shaadi or wedding.
